By Carly Ikuma
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| Peter the dog with her sanctuary caretaker. |
When HSI Asia Consultant Peter Li saw the shivering, frightened little dog in the median of a busy highway in Beijing, he didn’t think twice before asking the taxi driver to stop. Cautiously, Li approached the dog, gently picked her up, and took her back to his hotel. From there, he contacted a local animal rescue organization, who took the dog in for veterinary care and sanctuary.
Though the dog turned out to be a female, the animal rescue center named her “Peter” in homage to her rescuer. She is now doing much better thanks to the efforts of everyone involved, and HSI has issued a small grant to help cover the costs of sterilizing the remaining intact animals at the sanctuary.
This is just one of the many heartwarming stories coming out of China, usually more known for its animal welfare abuses and lack of cruelty laws than the millions of Chinese activists campaigning to give their country’s animals a better life.
But changes are indeed on the horizon for animals in China.
After receiving reports of a planned round-up of cats in Beijing last month, HSI responded by contacting our friends at the Animals Asia Foundation to see how we could help on developing cat Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) programs across the country. Spay/neuter and vaccination of street animals is the most successful approach to reducing populations, stopping the spread of zoonotic diseases, and introducing communities to the positive effects of humane animal management as well as responsible pet care.
In addition to supporting TNR programs for China’s cats, HSI is co-sponsoring with ACT Asia in mid-2008 an educational workshop for animal welfare activists in China, providing them with more knowledge and support to continue their lifesaving work.
